Videos: Perfection of an Icon

BMW has been producing the GS in one form or another for more than 30 years. Steady evolution has seen an ever growing list of features and capabilities. Yet through all those changes, one thing has remained constant: the GS ‘s air-cooled, opposed twin cylinder engine. In a surprise move, BMW has opted to take the R 1200 GS liquid-cooled for 2013. While the advantages to reliability and performance are well understood on street bikes, if you ‘re going to ride a big bike like the GS in the offroad manner for which it was intended, keeping things simple has its advantages also. No one wants to deal with a leaky radiator in the middle of the desert. BMW makes the case that it hasn ‘t forgotten the GS ‘s roots in this series of three development videos.

Part 2 of 3

Part 3 of 3

What do you think? Would you pay $18,340 for a more complicated if more capable R 1200 GS? Sound off in the comments.